Apple A6X

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Apple A6X
Apple A6X chip.jpg
The A6X chip used in the fourth-generation iPad
General information
LaunchedNovember 2, 2012
DiscontinuedOctober 16, 2014
Designed byApple Inc.
Common manufacturer(s)
  • Samsung Electronics
Product codeS5L8955X
Performance
Max. CPU clock rate1.4 GHz[1] 
Cache
L1 cache32 KB instruction + 32 KB data[2]
L2 cache1 MB[3]
Architecture and classification
ApplicationMobile
Min. feature size32 nm.[4]
MicroarchitectureSwift[1]
Instruction setARMv7-A:[1] ARM, Thumb-2 with "armv7s" extensions (integer division, VFPv4, Advanced SIMDv2)[5]
Physical specifications
Cores
GPU(s)PowerVR SGX554MP4 (quad-core)[1]
Products, models, variants
Variant(s)
  • Apple A6
History
PredecessorApple A5X
SuccessorApple A7 (APL5698 variant)

The Apple A6X is a 32-bit system-on-a-chip (SoC) designed by Apple Inc., introduced at the launch of the fourth generation iPad on October 23, 2012. It is a high-performance variant of the Apple A6 and the last 32-bit chip released before they switched to 64-bit. Apple claims the A6X has twice the CPU performance and up to twice the graphics performance of its predecessor, the Apple A5X.[6] Software updates for the iPad 4th generation ended in 2019 with the release of iOS 10.3.4 for cellular models, thus ceasing support for this chip.

Design[]

The A6X features a 1.4 GHz custom Apple-designed ARMv7-A architecture based dual-core CPU called Swift,[1] introduced in the Apple A6.[7] It includes an integrated quad-core PowerVR SGX554MP4 graphics processing unit (GPU)[1] running at 300 MHz[citation needed] and a quad-channel memory subsystem.[1] The memory subsystem supports LPDDR2-1066 DRAM, increasing the theoretical memory bandwidth to 17 GB/s.[3]

Unlike the A6, but similar to the A5X, the A6X is covered with a metal heat spreader, includes no RAM, and is not a package-on-package (PoP) assembly. The A6X is manufactured by Samsung on a High-κ metal gate (HKMG) 32 nm process. It has a die with an area of 123 mm2, 30% larger than the A6.[4]

Products that include the Apple A6X[]

  • iPad (4th generation)

See also[]

  • Apple silicon, the range of ARM-based processors designed by Apple.
  • Apple A6

Gallery[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h Lal Shimpi, Anand (November 2, 2012). "iPad 4 GPU Performance Analyzed: PowerVR SGX 554MP4 Under the Hood". AnandTech. Retrieved September 16, 2013.
  2. ^ "iPad (4th generation)". Geekbench. September 12, 2013. Retrieved September 18, 2013.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b Lal Shimpi, Anand (December 6, 2012). "iPad 4 (Late 2012) Review: CPU Performance". AnandTech. Retrieved September 17, 2013.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b "Inside the Apple iPad 4 – A6X a very new beast!". Chipworks. November 1, 2012. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved September 15, 2013.
  5. ^ "A few things iOS developers ought to know about the ARM architecture – Wandering Coder".
  6. ^ "Apple Introduces iPad mini". Apple. October 23, 2012. Retrieved September 16, 2013.
  7. ^ Lal Shimpi, Anand; Klug, Brian; Gowri, Vivek (October 16, 2012). "The iPhone 5 Review - Decoding Swift". AnandTech. Retrieved September 17, 2013.

External links[]

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